Federal Jury Awards Over $140 Million to NST Client in AndroGel Lawsuit

On October 5, 2017, a federal jury in Chicago, Illinois found large drug manufacturer AbbVie, Inc. liable for injuries caused by AndroGel, a testosterone replacement therapy treatment known to cause serious medical problems, such as heart attacks and strokes. The multi-week trial was held in the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois. After deliberating for nearly two days, a Tennessee man was awarded over $140 million by the jury who found that AndroGel caused him to suffer a heart attack. The verdict consisted of $140,000.00 in compensatory damages and $140 million in punitive damages, as AbbVie was found responsible for negligence, misrepresentation, and concealment of AndroGel’s risks.

The plaintiff was prescribed AndroGel in 2010 for symptoms his primary care physician attributed to low testosterone levels. Two months later, he suffered a heart attack. At trial, attorneys for the plaintiff argued he suffered the heart attack due to AndroGel, and experts testified about the link between AndroGel and cardiovascular risks. Further, evidence was introduced that AbbVie failed to adequately warn consumers and their healthcare providers of the significant health risks associated with AndroGel despite known medical research. AbbVie disputed liability and minimized AndroGel’s role in the heart attack, instead pointing to pre-existing medical conditions and claiming the company complied with U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) regulations in effect at the time.

“Low testosterone treatments were aggressively marketed to millions of middle-aged men for over 15 years without regard for whether they truly had the conditions for which it received FDA approval,” said Parker Trotz of Nahon, Saharovich & Trotz, one of the team attorneys for the plaintiff. “With this verdict, the jury sent a strong message that it is unacceptable for large pharmaceutical companies to prioritize profits over people by failing to conduct sufficient testing and knowingly hiding risks of adverse side effects to innocent consumers.”

Thousands of lawsuits have been filed regarding unsafe testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) treatments, which can come in the form of a patch, injection, gel, tablet, and cream. Testosterone has now become a multi-billion dollar industry, and products are manufactured by some of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. In recent years, the FDA has cautioned members of the public that “low-T” treatments should not be prescribed to men who have low testosterone levels due to normal aging.

“Taking AndroGel has unnecessarily complicated the life of our client, and we are extremely happy for him with this verdict. By sending such a loud message against AbbVie’s wrongful conduct, it is our hope that these jurors will prevent others from having to endure this type of pain in the future,” said Trotz.

If testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) or another prescription drug or medication injured you or a loved one, call Nahon, Saharovich & Trotz at 800-529-4004 or complete our online form for a free consultation.